If you’re working on a career change, the truth is you’re doing spiritual work. It takes soul searching to get clear about your work in the world and knowing what’s going to satisfy you. It takes courage to make yourself visible, and vulnerable, with interviews and networking. It takes your whole body and your senses to be present and communicate authentically and to listen for resonance to know, yes, this is where I want to be.
You’re doing deep work.
What would it be like to approach your career transition as a spirtual process? A ritual. A practice. A time for meditation and mindfulness. A time of deep listening. A commitment to your right work. A commitment to your best self.
In the spirit of the Jewish New Year, I’m going to offer some thoughts about delving into the practice of renewal.
The Jewish high holidays occur every autumn. They are marked by the period from Rosh Hashanah (the head of the new year) to Yom Kippur (the day of atonement). The high holiday period offers a thousands year old process to help us re-dedicate oureselves to our essential goodness.
The beginning of the Jewish New Year is marked by a shofar blast: long, high pitched, plaintiff sounds almost like the sound of grieving woman wailing. It’s a sound we can’t ignore. It’s a sound that wakes the senses. It’s a sound that pierces the body and touches the heart. It’s the call to listen deeply and search inside for the stirring of your own heart and spirit. It’s the call to action: listen deeply and feel the pain of looking honestly at yourself, take an inventory, determine where you need to make amends, what you need to forgive, where you have missed the mark, and with that openness, make room to re-dedicate yourself to what is good and righteous in yourself. The new year is ultimately a time of clearing and re-turning to one’s self, of cleaning the slate and starting anew. With a broken-open heart listening for what is true.
It’s your work, yes, but the truth is that all us have work to do when it comes to committing to ourselves and staying with the dark, uncomfortable places where we get stuck, where our inner critic takes over, where our minds get noisy and our spirits get silenced. Please join me in virtual community to listen deeply to what is true for you. I’m here if you want to reflect on what you’re learning and what you want to dedicate yourself to as you move ahead.